:00:49. > :00:55.Here in the North: it claims that police numbers have been cut to
:00:55. > :01:05.levels last seen in the 1970s. And as public funding for our canals is
:01:05. > :01:05.
:01:05. > :40:28.Apology for the loss of subtitles for 2363 seconds
:40:28. > :40:34.replaced by a charity, would you Welcome to the Politics Show off
:40:34. > :40:38.for Yorkshire and Lincolnshire. We are asking whether we are seeing a
:40:38. > :40:44.return to life on Mars policing. There are claims that police
:40:44. > :40:50.numbers have been reduced to levels last seen in the 1970s despite an
:40:50. > :40:55.increase in crime. And join me in the longest, deepest canal tunnel
:40:55. > :41:05.in the country as the Government prepares to hand the entire canal
:41:05. > :41:06.
:41:06. > :41:10.network over to a charity. Becks It was the decade of strikes and
:41:10. > :41:20.the Sweeney. And today there are claims that cuts to police numbers
:41:20. > :41:21.
:41:21. > :41:31.have left many regions served up by a few officers than in the 1970s. -
:41:31. > :41:41.- served up by fewer officers. Many officers are in no mood for
:41:41. > :41:42.
:41:42. > :41:49.compromise. The early 1970s it was the Year of a life on Mars.
:41:49. > :41:55.Industrial unrest was dealt with by a no-nonsense police tactics. 1974
:41:55. > :42:03.saw the creation of many of our modern police forces. In its first
:42:03. > :42:09.year of operation the Humberside police had just over 1900 officers
:42:09. > :42:15.dealing with 36,000 crimes. According to figures relating to
:42:15. > :42:21.2011 that the force had less than 1900 officers dealing with 76,000
:42:21. > :42:27.crimes. The public know that we have had
:42:27. > :42:33.had a resources and began making a real impact on their safety. That
:42:33. > :42:43.is now reversing. If we are going down too much a law levels at the
:42:43. > :42:48.
:42:48. > :42:58.1974 it cannot be a good message to the public. -- nor levels.
:42:58. > :43:01.1974. And more -- technology has changed since 1974. And more
:43:01. > :43:08.civilians work behind the scenes. But it is many of the support
:43:08. > :43:13.workers who claim they will be hit by proposed changes to allowances.
:43:13. > :43:16.Strike action has not been ruled out.
:43:16. > :43:23.1 the recommendation of which will hit us is the removal of weekend
:43:23. > :43:33.working. This will affect a large number of my members who may lose
:43:33. > :43:34.
:43:34. > :43:39.20% of their monthly Major. -- monthly wage. Many of them would
:43:39. > :43:44.not consider strike action however there are pockets in every
:43:44. > :43:48.department who are more active than others and they are seriously
:43:48. > :43:52.considering some form of industrial action.
:43:52. > :43:58.The Home Secretary this week told senior police officers are wide the
:43:58. > :44:04.cuts were necessary. They were encouraged to prioritise spending
:44:04. > :44:08.on frontline policing. It is my job to tell it like it
:44:08. > :44:12.says. To make the difficult decisions needed to get the police
:44:12. > :44:19.are through these tough times and put Paul missing on a sustainable
:44:19. > :44:24.footing for future generations. -- put the police.
:44:24. > :44:29.What do you say to people accused of scaremongering?
:44:29. > :44:33.Crime is increasing. Anybody who wants to suggest we are simply
:44:33. > :44:41.scaremongering does not live in the real world. They need to listen to
:44:41. > :44:46.the people who actually do the job. Many officers from Yorkshire and
:44:46. > :44:50.Lincolnshire will attend a national rally in London next week. They aim
:44:50. > :44:53.to persuade the Government to reassess police cuts and claimed
:44:53. > :44:59.that rising crime as a price that the public will not be willing to
:44:59. > :45:09.pay. And the studio as the Conservative
:45:09. > :45:11.
:45:11. > :45:16.MP for Brecon grin and the shadow police minister. Andrew, police are
:45:16. > :45:21.dealing with twice as much crime, but fewer numbers. That is not
:45:21. > :45:26.right, is it? As you saw in your item we have
:45:26. > :45:34.seen changes to the way policing is delivered. This is not something
:45:34. > :45:39.which is new. In 2007 police numbers and Humberside fell by 130.
:45:39. > :45:42.Select is about delivering policing differently.
:45:42. > :45:49.But any police officer will tell you that fewer officers means a
:45:49. > :45:55.more crime. That is controversial, whether you
:45:55. > :45:59.accept that. Some people say it as, some say it isn't. We have seen
:45:59. > :46:04.trains in Humberside where crime levels have been falling in recent
:46:04. > :46:10.years. -- trends. We have got to make sure we get the balance
:46:10. > :46:14.correct. Bad Johnston, Theresa May argues
:46:14. > :46:20.that the reduction in overall police numbers does not necessarily
:46:21. > :46:27.mean less officers on the beat. -- Diana Johnston. Does she have a
:46:27. > :46:30.point? Over the last 13 years we have seen
:46:30. > :46:36.more police officers with more powers are sending more people to
:46:36. > :46:41.prison. And crime fell. So clearly if you put resources in you can
:46:41. > :46:45.tackle crime. I worry that the way the Government are rushing through
:46:45. > :46:50.front loaded cuts means that we will see statistics going the other
:46:50. > :46:55.way and crime starting to rise. For my community that will be a
:46:55. > :46:58.dreadful situation. Can you really look people in the
:46:58. > :47:03.eyes and claimed that the Conservatives are the party of law
:47:03. > :47:08.and order? Ken Clarke wants to reduce sentences and you are
:47:08. > :47:13.cutting it police numbers. I will not defend Ken Clarke's
:47:13. > :47:19.position given that I voted against it in Parliament. But my views on
:47:19. > :47:24.law and order have not changed at all. We just want to cut back on
:47:24. > :47:27.the paper work, some of the things that hold them back. I would like
:47:27. > :47:34.us to remove some of the other barriers to the police doing their
:47:34. > :47:39.job. Health and safety stuff, human rights issues. It all has to be
:47:39. > :47:43.taken together. We all want to trust the police more and give them
:47:43. > :47:47.more powers. But we must accept we are in a difficult place
:47:47. > :47:52.financially. The issue of reforming police pay
:47:52. > :47:57.and pensions was kicked into long grass by both Tory and Labour
:47:57. > :48:02.governments, previously. Can you honestly say that where you in
:48:02. > :48:08.power today you could find the police force at previous levels?
:48:08. > :48:15.We certainly recognise that savings would have to be made and there
:48:15. > :48:21.inspector it would have to come up with 12% savings. -- of the
:48:21. > :48:25.inspectorate. But the current cuts are far too fast and front loaded.
:48:25. > :48:30.So we will see an impact on crime levels.
:48:30. > :48:36.Moving away from the police dispute, Unison has been in talks with the
:48:36. > :48:41.Government this week or for public sector pensions and pay.
:48:41. > :48:46.Yorkshireman, Dave Prentice, is the general secretary. We asked him if
:48:46. > :48:51.he saw strike action as a more or less likely.
:48:51. > :48:56.I am not talking in percentage terms. But I will say that we're
:48:57. > :49:00.hoping for the best. But I'll tell you that very strongly, we are
:49:00. > :49:05.planning for the worst. If we are ready in our membership and making
:49:05. > :49:10.sure we will win the arguments in court. I have no doubt these
:49:10. > :49:16.employers will take us to court. If we have to balance the needs of
:49:16. > :49:21.5,000 members. We would prefer not to be taking
:49:21. > :49:27.this action. Our members want to do their jobs and care for people.
:49:27. > :49:30.There is no profit motive that involved. This is not the
:49:30. > :49:34.aristocracy, at is the working- class. We're saying to the
:49:34. > :49:40.community, and now it is your time to care for the members who have
:49:40. > :49:44.cared for you. There is no threat, we want an agreement.
:49:44. > :49:51.It sounds like Dave Prentice is not yet fully committing to a national
:49:51. > :49:54.ballot on strike action. Your message to Unison members?
:49:54. > :50:01.Clearly we all want people around the table negotiating and reaching
:50:01. > :50:07.an agreement. Both sides. I am just a very worried by the Government
:50:07. > :50:12.approach. It is a megaphone diplomacy. If we have seen than a
:50:12. > :50:18.Alexander laid down the law. That is not the way too late -- to deal
:50:18. > :50:25.with the issues. -- Danny Alexander. But I am heartened by what they've
:50:25. > :50:29.said there are about talks on going. Ed balls and even some Tories would
:50:29. > :50:32.quite like to see a public sector strike because it would provide a
:50:32. > :50:37.scapegoat for their faltering economy.
:50:37. > :50:43.That is guff. She talks about megaphone diplomacy. Dave Prentice
:50:43. > :50:52.was talking about class warfare and then pretending to be consensual in
:50:52. > :50:57.the other. -- talking about class warfare in one breath. The reality
:50:58. > :51:04.is that the public sector pension schemes -- pension schemes have to
:51:04. > :51:09.change. Everybody accepts that. We have got to manage that and do it
:51:09. > :51:14.in an negotiated way. A change of topic. Not a lot of
:51:14. > :51:20.people know this but the faster of the beck government projects to be
:51:20. > :51:25.taken over by the bed society are hour state owned canals. They will
:51:25. > :51:35.be handed over to an independent charity specially set up to do the
:51:35. > :51:40.
:51:40. > :51:45.job. Al reporter has been taking a This is the entrance to more than
:51:45. > :51:51.200 years of the Yorkshire's industrial history.
:51:51. > :51:59.What we have here is the oldest, at deepest canal in the country. It is
:51:59. > :52:06.about three-quarters of a mile long. At the deepest point there is 640
:52:06. > :52:10.ft above us. It took 16 years of sweat and toil
:52:10. > :52:18.before the Standbridge tunnel which carries the Huddersfield Canal to
:52:18. > :52:21.Lancashire was completed in 1811. It finally closed in 1944. These
:52:21. > :52:29.two rest trips and the traffic it now carries are only possible
:52:29. > :52:37.because of a massive rescue project in 2001. -- to rest.
:52:37. > :52:42.That is terrific. A remarkable achievement from the Canal Society.
:52:42. > :52:47.Canal enthusiasts now face a new challenge. The Government wants to
:52:47. > :52:52.hand over ownership and running of the canal network across the
:52:52. > :52:55.country to a charitable trust. Well the new organisation be able to
:52:55. > :53:01.engage a volunteers in a root-and- branch way?
:53:01. > :53:08.The existing organisation does not do that. It has tried but it needs
:53:08. > :53:11.to be a very different organisation to achieve it. The important one
:53:11. > :53:21.for Oz and other organisations as a funding. There is a large gap in
:53:21. > :53:24.
:53:24. > :53:27.what is being offered. The With a National Trust of canals
:53:27. > :53:34.taking ownership and control enthusiastically month that the
:53:34. > :53:39.subsidy is only half of what is needed to ensue and the future of a
:53:39. > :53:48.feature which is at the heart of the tourist industry.
:53:48. > :53:57.On average, 1990 private boats and their fear -- birth in canals like
:53:57. > :54:02.this one every day. Seeler, these locks on the Leeds-Liverpool canal
:54:02. > :54:09.are used every day. But they were built four heels before the French
:54:09. > :54:15.Revolution. British Waterways has one -- run the network since the
:54:15. > :54:21.1950s. It will be transformed into the new independent charity taking
:54:21. > :54:27.over. Around 20% of its income comes from licence fees from canal
:54:27. > :54:32.users. Then 40% from rents on canalside properties. The rest is
:54:32. > :54:37.filled by government grants. We have a restored more water ways
:54:37. > :54:42.than we originally built when they originally constructed the canals.
:54:42. > :54:49.But going into the future we do need to create a sound financial
:54:50. > :54:53.few -- footing and plan for the future. Our financial plan lasts
:54:53. > :55:02.for 15 years minimum and that will provide a far better situation than
:55:02. > :55:06.we have had so far. Nigel hires out 17 barges from an
:55:06. > :55:11.arena at Selby bridge. He is a supporter of the independent
:55:11. > :55:15.charity idea but worries it will be deprived of money.
:55:15. > :55:20.Given the state which the economy is an, would you expect the
:55:20. > :55:30.Government to say we're going to spend money on canals?
:55:30. > :55:34.They should spend it in proportion to the cost of usage. They do have
:55:34. > :55:41.to pay for that because otherwise it will have to be subsidised by
:55:41. > :55:45.other users are which is not right. Owner canal network has taken more
:55:45. > :55:51.than 200 years to build. But one of the biggest changes in their
:55:51. > :55:58.history will be sorted out in only months. The National Trust of the
:55:58. > :56:02.canals will take over in 20th April We asked the canals minister if the
:56:02. > :56:08.network could survive on charity alone.
:56:08. > :56:14.We are drifting to the new charity �400 million worth of property. --
:56:14. > :56:21.gifting. This has always been there are subject to any government
:56:21. > :56:25.staging a dawn raid to and now they will go in to the charity and no
:56:25. > :56:29.future government will ever be able to touch it. What's more the
:56:29. > :56:36.charity can be here up against it and increase their income against
:56:36. > :56:41.that property portfolio. We have a tougher budgetary climate. But that
:56:41. > :56:49.does not mean there isn't wriggle room and how we set up this new
:56:49. > :56:56.charity. We can support it in a variety of different ways. Indeed I
:56:56. > :57:00.hope people lobby me. The door is not shut.
:57:00. > :57:07.Dannatt Johnston, some would say that British Waterways is an
:57:07. > :57:13.expensive quango. -- banner. Could their money be better spelt
:57:13. > :57:17.elsewhere -- spent. There was an expectation before a
:57:17. > :57:22.general election now we would have to look at the structure of British
:57:22. > :57:28.Waterways. We preferred a mutual which gave people with a stake a
:57:28. > :57:33.say in running the organisation. But my big concern as the money. Or
:57:33. > :57:37.will the Budget allow it to do what it needs to do?
:57:37. > :57:42.Is this just another small and managers attempt to get a public
:57:42. > :57:47.service of the book under the guise of the big society?
:57:47. > :57:54.Absolutely not. As Diana said the previous government also looked at
:57:54. > :57:59.it. I think it is a good mover which puts them in a completely
:57:59. > :58:02.different place to where they are at the moment. The National Trust
:58:02. > :58:06.is a good example of what they can become and as the minister
:58:06. > :58:12.explained that there is a wiggle room on the funding.
:58:12. > :58:17.We are not seeing as much about the big society. Has it been quietly
:58:17. > :58:27.elbowed aside? For North will stock it is just
:58:27. > :58:27.
:58:27. > :58:35.hard to define. It is charitable giving. -- no, it is hard to define.
:58:35. > :58:40.But when it is there and you see it you know what it is.
:58:40. > :58:45.This is our last programme before the summer break. I do not suppose
:58:45. > :58:49.that two of you will be our way together! But a final order on how
:58:49. > :58:53.you think the political landscape will change.
:58:53. > :58:59.You will see the cuts are biting and people's everyday lives been
:58:59. > :59:05.affected. Come the autumn we will be no different position. The shine
:59:05. > :59:11.on the Government is coming off. -- we will be in a different position.
:59:11. > :59:16.The bottom will be a rough time for the coalition government.
:59:16. > :59:20.I disagree. The Rupert Murdoch issue might define the summer. But
:59:20. > :59:24.as the Prime Minister said, all political parties have a
:59:24. > :59:31.responsibility when it comes to that. The shine coming of the
:59:31. > :59:37.coalition? I am not sure I agree. Manufacturing is up, unemployment,
:59:38. > :59:43.our biggest fall in 10 years. Not here in hall.
:59:43. > :59:50.It is patchy across the country we accept that.
:59:50. > :00:00.No, in the north, and a full stock let's remember, the coalition did
:00:00. > :00:07.
:00:07. > :00:11.not put us in this position. The coalition did not put us in